Campfire
by Xtreme Pineapple
Summary: It's orientation, and team RWBY is meeting for the first time. This is a moment i wished was in the show: a slow, peaceful moment of character introduction and exploration (With a bit of action of course.) Extended Canon.


Yang loved her fire. It flowed from her core, dancing down her arms and across her fingers. Her aura radiated pure heat, every inch of muscle coiled in anticipation. The surrounding air was quickly heated, creating a sharp updraft that lifted her mane of blond hair in a pillar of flames. Looking around the small clearing, Yang watched as the encroaching shadows retreated from The intensity of her personal inferno. Maintaining the blaze, she looked over her shoulder to make sure her new partner was watching.

Blake was indeed watching, although not with the same as impressed expression Yang had been hoping for. She wore a simple black outfit and white undershirt that complemented her fair skin and dark hair, all topped with a black bow. While Blake's expression appeared calm, her amber eyes were wary and calculating. She had already prepared a circle of ground and rocks for the campfire, and was sitting on a fallen log in front of their shared tent when Yang turned around.

"Are you planning on sitting on the ground for a few hours?" Blake asked, deadpan.

Yang chuckled as she turned back to their pile of firewood, scooping up a few hours worth. "Can't a girl show off from time to time?"

A small smile flickered across Blake's features before she rolled her eyes. "I suppose so."

Yang began to whistle as she assembled the burning sticks and logs, happy to know that Blake had a sense of humor, even if it was buried for now. She was looking forward to really bonding with her new partner, and the night of orientation was her first chance to do so.

The Orientation at Beacon Academy was the well guarded secret, and the freshman had only heard the full details from Ozpin while overlooking the testing zone from a cliff along the perimeter. After landing in the forest, they would permanently partner with the first person they made eye contact with. Permanently. As in the next four years. They would then be responsible for surviving the rest of the day and the coming night with said partner. In the morning, each team would locate and collect a relic that had been placed overnight and return to the top of the cliff. As much as the whole experience was basically a glorified fetch-quest, the real value came in getting to know your teammate.

A few minutes later, Yang sat down on a stump around their sizable campfire. Both girls watched peacefully as the last hues of red and purple drained from the night sky. It was a cloudless night, and Yang ould see more stars than she ever remembered. She chatted idly about the constellations, rattling off any she could remember.

"Let's see, we've got the broken tower over there, Ursa Major above us, and through those trees.. yep you can just see the Maiden."

"You certainly know your constellations." Blake was participating in the conversation halfheartedly. While she did glance in the directions Yang motioned, her eyes would quickly return to scanning the edge of the small clearing, searching for danger.

Yang frowned, trying to think of smalltalk that would lead to a real conversation. She was glad to have a vigilant partner, but everyone needs to relax at some point. "Leave it to Ozpin to chuck us off a cliff on day one, am I right?"

Blake's brow furrowed, "I had heard his teaching methods were unorthodox, but basing four years of partnership on eye contact is…" She trailed off, shaking her head. "He just seems surprisingly apathetic."

"I dunno, Blake.." Yang's face split into a comically wide grin as her muse struck. There was no turning back now. "While _at first glance_ his teaching style might seem strange-"

Blake's eyes narrowed, unsure if the blonde's wording was intentional. Her questions were answered as Yang pulled out her trusty finger guns, sealing the deal. "If you _look at_ the results you might start to _see_ the appeal."

Blake covered her face with her hands before responding, muffled. "I can't believe you."

Yang laughed, turning back to face the stars.

Blake sighed as she sat back up, her eyes reflecting the dancing flames. After a long pause she spoke up. "Honestly I'm surprised that you're happy to be partnered with me."

Yang winced, remembering their conversation during last night's sleepover. "Of course I'm happy. Despite first impressions, you seem really cool." _There was definitely a better way to say that._ "I mean, earlier today you dropped that Ursa before I even saw you."

Blake smiled wryly. "I distinctly remember you saying you could have taken them."

"Oh, that was no lie. It's not often a few Grimm can get me that angry." Yang gathered her hair over her shoulder, running her fingers through the blonde curls. "My semblance still had enough gas for him and 10 of his buddies."

Blake remained seemingly unconvinced of Yang's confident claim. "And your semblance is what.. flammable hair?"

Yang could not stop laughing. In all the years since she had discovered her semblance she had never once considered that specific detail. Blake was watching her with an expression that was both confused and concerned, but she didn't mind. _She made a joke!_

After she calmed down Yang wiped her eyes with both hands, exhilarated. "You got me, that's my semblance." Blake's disbelief was palpable. "However, as a small side effect to this wonderful superpower, I can dish out any hit i've taken twice as hard."

Yang concentrated, flaring her semblance one last time. Her eyes still switched to red, but instead of catching fire she just gave off a soft glow. "Once I absorb enough blows, I can just cut loose. No Grimm stands a chance when I'm pumped up!" She flexed to emphasize her point, turning back to Blake as her power receded once more. "Pretty cool, right?"

Blakes expression was hard to read, a mix of surprise and caution that was quickly replaced by a neutral mask. She spoke slowly, as if choosing her words carefully. "So… your semblance absorbs energy to make yourself stronger?"

Yang didn't know her partner very well yet, and she couldn't tell if her partner was angry, annoyed, or just lost in thought. "I mean, you're not wrong." The corners of Blake's mouth twitched down, and Yang started to worry. "Is everything alright?"

"What? Oh of course." Blake seemed to catch herself, making her face even harder to read. "I'm sorry, I used to know someone with a similar-" Her head snapped up, eyes staring into the forest. Silently, she reached for the sword on her back, getting to her feet.

Yang jumped up, "What do you see? Grimm? Where are-"

"SHHHHHH" It took a special kind of person to shush Yang, but Blake's intense expression did the trick. "Something's coming. Stay alert."

Yang turned towards the forest, peering into the thick veil of night. She spoke again, careful to remain at a whisper. "Are you sure? I don't see anything. Blake?" She turned her back but her partner was gone, vanished into the night. _So much for teamwork._

Branches whipped past Ruby's face as she shot through the dark, heart pounding in her ears. She glanced over her shoulder, making sure that her partner was still in tow.

"Keep running Weiss!"

The heiress was attempting to keep up with her on foot, a challenge that even Uncle Qrow had trouble with sometimes. And Qrow didn't even wear heels. Usually.

Finally confident in the distance they had traveled, Ruby began to slow down. She peered into the forest, expecting to see the glowing red eyes staring back through the trees. Weiss finally caught up, doubling over as she gasped for air. _Oops, maybe I overdid it._ Ruby had really made an effort to run at a reasonable human speed, but adrenaline must've gotten the better of her. "Hey Weiss, are you okay?"

The heiress remained hunched, raising a single finger with a clear message. Wait. Ruby stood patiently as Weiss's breathing slowed and she was able to stand up. With a hand still clutching her side, she stood to her full height, taking in a full breath. "RUBY ROSE HOW DARE YOU!"

Ruby rolled her eyes. She was accustomed to the heiress's constant bickering by now. Weiss seemed to have an infinite reserve of energy as long as it was directed at scolding her caped partner. _Maybe I should have run a little faster after all._

Weiss continued, furious. "We could have set up camp in any of the caves along the cliffs but no, you had pick a clearing infested with beowolves!"

"Who wants to sleep in a cave?" Ruby responded indignantly. _This is so not my fault._ "And how was I supposed to know there would be an Alpha? Without it we would have won, easy!"

Weiss had completely abandoned her usual elitist, patronizing tone in her frustration. "You don't know, that's the point! No teammate of mine is going to keep running in blind until they get themselves killed!"

The Grimm lunged without warning. Ruby watched Weiss's eyes widen in shock as she heard the monster snarl behind her. As if in slow motion, Ruby began turning to face the danger, hardening her aura in anticipation. _Too slow!_ However, before the beast's claws could find their mark, the world tilted, sending the young girl sprawling onto the forest floor. She heard a pained yell as the Grimm followed through, striking Weiss. _She pushed me out of the way._

"Weiss!" Ruby scrambled to her feet, hands reaching back for her weapon. Unfortunately, her hands only found crescent rose's empty scabbard as the monster turned to face her once more. The Beowulf stared her down, growling as Ruby began to recognize this specific Grimm. _It's the Alpha from the clearing._ Alpha Grimm were a fairly recent phenomenon that had started to appear in Remnant. They were much larger than others of their type, with natural armor that resembled external bones. The alpha beowulf staring her down was no exception, it's threatening growl shaking the very ground. Weiss was nowhere to be seen and Ruby had to assume that she had been thrown clear of the fight.

Ruby caught sight of crescent rose lying slightly to her left. The monster's growl intensified as it followed her gaze, lowering its body to pounce. After a split second hesitation, Ruby dove for her weapon. The monster's roar was deafening as it closed the distance in a single leap. Unable to draw her weapon in time, Ruby once again threw up a desperate block. To the grimm's surprise as well as her own, a shadowy figure fell from above, driving it's sword through the alpha's head. Ruby recognized Blake as she flipped off of it's back, sending the Grimm smashing into the ground, it's body already starting to evaporate.

"You two are really loud." Blake casually retrieved her weapon, checking the blade for damage. "Lucky you."

 _Wow, Blake is so cool. I wonder who she got as a partner. Partner…_ Suddenly remembering the possibly injured heiress, Ruby called out. "Oh no, Weiss!"

"Quiet down, you dolt." Weiss limped into view, picking twigs out of her hair. "The least you can do is not blow out my eardrums."

Ruby hesitated, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't reignite their previous argument. "I, uh.. I'm glad you're okay."

Weiss scoffed, "It's not like your aura could have absorbed that blow. You've been picking fights since we hit the ground." She paused as she caught sight of Blake. "You there, I didn't happen to catch your name yesterday."

Blake's face twitched at the heiress's haughty tone, but Ruby jumped in. "This is Blake! She likes books and being left alone and.. well I don't know much else. By the way, how did you find us, Blake?"

"Our campsite is close enough that I heard you running through the forest. I'm assuming you two don't have one yet?" Ruby's puppy dog eyes seemed to sufficiently answer the question.

Blake sighed. "Follow me."

 _No one would see me go._

Blake could see the whole valley from her perch, spread out under the shattered moon. It's light cast uneven shadows over the treetops skewing any sense of distance. At this height, the gentle breeze carried little smell of the forest. It was closer to mountain air, brisk and clean. Several points of light were visible throughout the valley, the closest being her own campfire

Blake once again adjusted her Faunus ears, listening for signs of Grimm. She frowned as the rough fabric of the bow scuffed her second pair of ears, those of a black cat. She resisted the urge to scratch them, still unaccustomed to the literally paper thin disguise. As if she needed a reminder of how completely different she is from these people.

"Blaaaake! Are we going the right waaaay?" Ruby's voice called from the forest floor.

 _No one would see me go._ That thought often came up in situations like this, situations where she could simply leave. She could silently drop into the forest a few trees over, avoiding the other camps. She could make it to Vale by tomorrow where she could… do what? This was her life now, to make the world a better place from the other side. A way to fight for equality without the Fang's violent actions. Still, the thought remained.

Weiss called out next. "Blake! Show yourself!" Blake sighed, carefully making her way down from branch to branch. _Not today._ She landed carefully behind the two girls just as Ruby called out a second time, preventing them from hearing her fall. _I swear, humans must be half deaf._

Blake stepped into view. "Don't worry, we're almost there."

"Oh!" Ruby jumped at her sudden appearance, but recovered quickly. "Didn't see you there, Blake. Ready to lead the way?"

Blake was thoroughly confused by her young classmate. _This girl is so trusting it doesn't even seem sane._ Nevertheless, she guided them through the dark forest, ignoring the Schnee's muttering about being left behind.

A few minutes later, the glow from the campfire began to light their path. Yang called out as they approached, prompting Ruby to sprint ahead for a sisterly tackle-hug. Blake had to smile at the resulting laughter, happy to see family that got along so comfortably.

To Blake's surprise, Weiss spoke up as they continued towards the reunion. "I can't believe she's still on her feet after today. Her constant hyperactivity is exhausting." They walked a few more paces in awkward silence. "How is being partnered with Yang? She certainly seems capable enough."

"She certainly is." More silence. Blake had attacked or stolen from the Schnee family so many times, she was finding it hard to keep a straight face. _Even so, she is not her father. Weiss deserves her own chance._ With great effort, Blake managed to respond amicably. "Yang may be a bit of a loose cannon, but she seems direct and honest." Weiss nodded, and the talking became easier as Blake continued. "And I understand what you mean about the overbearing enthusiasm. While Yang might be more mature, she can certainly be… boisterous."

At this point, Ruby's embrace had spiraled into a full grappling match, with the victorious Yang holding her sister in a headlock. Now that she had Ruby under control she looked up, waving at Blake with her free hand. Weiss frowned, too tired to care about the sister's antics. "That certainly appears to be the case."

Five minutes and one pitched tent later, all four girls sat around the campfire, talking about the day. Yang sat on the same stump after fetching one for Ruby, while Weiss shared the log with blake. There was a lot to discuss on the first day, especially with how little they actually knew about each other. They talked about the other students as they ate their dinner rations, debating who the other partners were.

"Absolutely not!" Weiss protested. "I refuse to believe that Pyrrha Nikos, the _legend_ , got stuck with vomit boy."

Blake tried not to laugh as Yang responded, "I donno, Weiss. I'm pretty sure I saw Pyrrha eyeing the dude." She shrugged, smiling. "I happen to have quite the intuition."

Ruby laughed into her meal, much to the horror of her teammate. "Your intuition? Remember when your intuition told you that the bottle of old milk wasn't _that_ bad? You threw up twice!"

"Traitorous sister, giving away all of my secrets." Yang whispered jokingly.

Weiss returned to the subject at hand. "Maybe he ended up with that tall boy with the mace? I doubt the platform threw him all that far."

Blake shrugged, doubtful. "If that's the case, I wouldn't be surprised if Jaune's platform sent him all the way to Atlas. I doubt they landed closeby."

"Mock my intuition all you want, but there are two people I _know_ are together."

Ruby thought about it, tilting her head. "Together, together?"

"Oh, those two." Weiss remembered. "I heard the girl call him Ren, but I didn't catch her name. They have a… unique chemistry."

"Her name is Nora." Blake had been able to hear Ren's quiet voice across the locker room thanks to her extra senses. "Apparently they've been friends since childhood."

Ruby huffed at the comment, looking at her sister. "Apparently, some people think that knowing each other for that long would make them bad partners."

Yang sighed, trying to explain. "I told her she should try to branch out and make friends. Unfortunately she still ended up with ice queen over here."

"Hey!"

Blake fought off a smile, thoroughly enjoying the moment. She had almost forgotten this feeling of bonding and camaraderie that was so present here. Ever since the White Fang changed leadership, the organization had lost that spark. Meetings became more tense and orders were followed without discussion. The Fang sacrificed a lot fighting for Faunus rights, but it didn't even blink an eye when it sacrificed itself.

"Blake?"

Embarrassed, Blake realized that her mind had wandered off when she heard her name. "Sorry, what? I'm.. kinda tired."

Weiss yawned, trying to shake it off. "Ugh, don't remind me."

Ruby was seemingly incredulous, "How can you be tired? Tomorrow we get to search for treasure!" Blake smiled at the girl's colorful interpretation of Ozpin's instructions. More accurately, their task would be to retrieve relics that would appear somewhere in the valley the following morning. _Still, searching for treasure does sound more fun._

Yang got to her feet, grinning. "Well, since my favorite little sister just admitted she's not tired, she gets first watch."

Weiss covered her mouth, fighting another yawn. "S-second."

Yang clapped her hands, content. "Sounds great. Wake me if you need a third, alright?"

As the girls finally headed to bed, Blake felt something she had not experienced in a long time. It took her a moment to recognize the feeling, but it was trust. She trusted these people she barely knew with keeping watch all night. She believed that they were not only willing, but were actually responsible enough to stay alert. _Why? Why do I trust them?_ Blake struggled to answer the question as her mind slowly drifted off, falling asleep.

 _Weiss was a child playing with the flowers. She ran through the massive gardens chasing the birds and talking to the wind. It said nice things about her hair and her dress. Her sister was there too, laughing and waving hello. Even her mother was outside, sitting under an umbrella, silent but still smiling. That was okay. The sky was so blue today! She ran farther into the garden, following a cobblestone path. She heard crying. Why were they crying? She looked around, but everyone was gone. And who was crying? As she walked around the bush, she saw a young boy . He was the one crying. She noticed the boy had four ears, two were human, but the others were on the top of his head, fuzzy and round._

" _Weiss, don't play with that boy. Keep walking." Her father's voice rang in her ears, and suddenly Weiss was older, about thirteen. The boy is dangerous, I should keep walking. Weiss could see her family manor at the end of the path, where her father was waiting._

 _She started to leave but the boy stopped her. "Wait, can you help me up?" He doesn't look very dangerous. She knew her father was waiting but this would only take a second._

 _As she reached out, her father's voice rang through here ears a second time "Weiss! What did I tell you?" She was annoyed by the voice but complied, continuing her walk towards the mansion. She was confused, the boy hadn't seemed dangerous at all._

 _She was her normal age when she heard a shout from behind her. When she turned to see what it was, a large grizzly bear stood on the path, shouting. "Down with the Schnee!" She attempted to draw her sword, but it was not at her hip. The bear lunged and she wasn't able to dodge. It's teeth filled her vision, getting closer and closer until-_

Weiss's body jerked violently to avoid the imaginary attack, jolting her awake. She sat up in a cold sweat, thoroughly disoriented by her surroundings. It took her a moment to identify the rough ground and tent canvas hanging overhead as she calmed down, remembering where she was. She was was Weiss Schnee, she was halfway through orientation at Beacon, and the scene was just a nightmare. She moaned, annoyed at how much sleep she was losing. _I guess it's good I volunteered for next watch._

Weiss recounted the dream's events as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Once again, her father had been present. The details were already fading, but she remembered Father had been really angry. Weiss remembered someone else, a crying boy. A Faunus? Weiss shook her head. _Why am I wasting time thinking about this? Dreams are all nonsense anyways._

Like all thoughts involving her father, Weiss pushed the dream out of her mind as she prepared for watch. She hadn't changed out of yesterday's combat gear, so it was fairly simple to lace up her heeled boots and sheath Myrtenaster in her belt. Her long white hair was being much more troublesome and it took Weiss a considerable amount of time to get it in order. Having finally secured her hair into its usual side ponytail, she decided she was decent enough to emerge from the tent.

The clearing was still as dark as when she went to bed, the only visible change being the position of the moon and stars. Ruby was sitting by the low fire cleaning her weapon, a welcome sight for her new partner. _Good. I half expected her to be asleep by now._ Being partnered with the youngest possible student was… a stressful experience for Weiss. She refused to be anything but top in her class, and if first impressions were any indication, Ruby was not a good study partner. However, she had proved herself a surprisingly competent individual fighter. It might be a little more impressive if she would communicate her attacks _at all,_ but battlefield etiquette is much easier to learn than raw skill. Weiss still wasn't happy about partnering with this caped child, but it could certainly be worse.

As Weiss approached the light of the fire, she thought she noticed Ruby talking quietly to herself. However, as she got closer, she realized that wasn't exactly the case.

"Ah, you were so cool when you cut that boarbatusk in half! We still need to work on reducing your recoil, though. What do you think? Boosted stabilizers?" Ruby Rose cooed over her weapon as she wiped it down with a small rag. A few metallic pieces were piled beside her, waiting to be cleaned and reassembled. Weiss listened to her partner ramble for a little longer before loudly clearing her throat.

"AH! Weiss!" Ruby jumped up, knocking the rest of her components into the grass. "What are you doing up? It's only been a couple hours"

Weiss rolled her eyes, crossing her arms in a huff. "Well apparently my shift starts now because _someone_ decided to disassemble their weapon while on guard." She gestured to the scattered parts that Ruby was starting to pick up. "How would you defend the camp if something attacked?"

Ruby responded shyly. "I'm only doing maintenance on the specialized dust pumps. It's not like i was disassembling the receiver or the aura conduits or something. I'm not stupid."

Weiss frowned, still confused by the caped girl. While Ruby could seem so immature talking to her comically large gardening tool, Weiss was surprised by her immense knowledge of firearms. While Weiss was certainly proud of her Rapier, Myrtenaster, the weapon had never been fully her own. When she came of age, Father had hired a master smith to help her with the engineering.

In contrast, Ruby's weapon was far more complex and probably a custom design. Weiss had certainly never seen anything like it. _Maybe I have been too hard on her._ Weiss sighed, leaning down to help her partner pick up the remaining pieces. "Oh, here. Let me help."

Ruby quietly thanked her after all the pieces were collected, sitting back down to continue working. They sat to the sound of the crackling fire as Ruby cleaned, inspected, and finally rebuilt her scythe piece by piece. Still confused by the smaller girl, Weiss was the first to break the silence. "What is it called?"

Ruby looked up holding a wrench in her right hand and a screwdriver between her teeth. "Huh?"

"Your weapon. Did you give it a name?" Weiss responded, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, yeah!" Ruby nodded as she set down her tools. For the first time, Weiss was able to make a close up inspection of the crazy machine. With dozens of springs, blades, and a interlacing sheets of metal, the only thing more impressive than this monstrosity of engineering was the girl who wielded it with ease. "Meet Crescent Rose, my giant scythe slash high impact sniper rifle!"

"You gave your weapon your last name?" Weiss lifted an eyebrow. Just a second ago she had been so impressed but now?

"Yes and it's totally not weird!" Ruby claimed unconvincingly.

Weiss couldn't help but smile at the name. The thought of calling her rapier 'Myrtenaster Schnee' was just too ridiculous. Stifling a giggle, she managed to keep her composure. "Whatever you say, Dolt."

Their conversation fell away as Ruby finished the repairs, securing the last bolt before giving Crescent Rose a final once over. The pair sat in silence, but there was something different about the dynamic that Weiss couldn't quite put her finger on. In the Schnee manor, shared silence was most often accompanied by anxiety or shame. It was a tool her father used to express displeasure. It was a tool her siblings used to deal with their father. But this was different.

The silence she shared with Ruby wasn't accusatory, or part of some twisted physiological chess match. It was... comfortable. They had done nothing but argue and bicker all afternoon, but at the end of the day, they were two young women resting after a long day of watching each other's backs. This was a moment of peace, and Weiss decided she liked this sensation very much. For a quick moment she considered that coming all the way to Vale might be more than just proving a point to her father. _Maybe.. this is where I belong._

"Hey Weiss?"

Weiss looked up at her partner. "Yes, Ruby?"

In that moment, illuminated by the tired flames, Weiss saw an expression on Ruby's face she had considered impossible. Serious. "I wanted to thank you for saving me earlier." Weiss started to respond but Ruby rambled over her. "I-I know you might think it was nothing, or that I would have been fine, but that's not the point. You pushed me out of the way without thinking, 'cause that's who you are. I guess what i'm trying to say is.." Ruby smiled, lighting up the clearing more than the small campfire ever could. "I trust you and i'm glad we are on the same team!"

"Thank you Ruby." Weiss bid goodnight to the younger girl as she headed off to bed humming the theme song of some action movie. While this behavior was more of what Weiss had come to expect, it was in stark contrast to the seriousness of the past few minutes. _Despite everything, she's still just a kid._ Weiss sighed, settling into a comfortable seat for her long watch. _I think.. I like having a partner._


End file.
